“If it’s priced right” is a familiar phrase heard from Realtors when asked about a home’s chance of selling.

Priced too high, a home may languish on the market and cause buyers to wonder if something is wrong. Priced too low, a home may sell quickly, but short-change the seller and reduce property values for other homes in the neighborhood.

So how do Realtors and homeowners find that sweet spot? Is it an art or a science? It’s a little of both, according to Realtors in southwestern Connecticut.

“It’s more of a science. It’s based on facts,” Debra Cummings-Waldorf, a Realtor with RE/MAX in New Milford, said. “You have to look at what it is, where it is, the age. There’s a basic formula and then you make adjustments based on things like amenities, age of the roof, comparative sales and other listings. But you have to have a feel for it and where the market is going.”

Betty Hensal of William Pitt Sotheby’s International Realty in Danbury looks at pricing a home as more of an art form.

“A lot of it is subjective and sometimes it’s difficult to measure. That’s where the expertise of a Realtor with knowledge of the market comes in,” Hensal said. “A house will sell in any market or location if it’s priced right.”

Hensal said it is important to price a home properly from the beginning. If a seller is forced to drop the price, “it’s only human nature to wonder what’s wrong,” Hensal of the potential buyer’s perspective.

“You’re just selling your competition if it’s priced too high,” she said. “You’re better off pricing it properly right out of the gate.”

Cummings-Waldorf added: “It’s like anything. I may want to sell my car for $30,000, but if it’s not worth $30,000, I’m not going to get $30,000.”

Pricing a home too high is the “kiss of death” in real estate, said Greenwich Realtor Jane Brash of Coldwell Banker.

“You want the momentum from the very get-go,” she said.

Otherwise, Brash said, it’s a downward spiral where buyers are turned off by the price while the home languishes on the market and, eventually, buyers start assuming something’s wrong with the property, causing it to linger even longer.

Lowering a price, however, can work in the seller’s favor, said Deb Alderson, president of the Mid-Fairfield County Association of Realtors based in Westport.

“When you reduce the price, it refreshes (the listing) for many people, since it puts it back in front of their eyes,” said Alderson, who works in the Westport office of Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices New England Properties. “I have searches set up for all my clients, and when one (drops) in price, it definitely can have an impact. Any time you see a drop … there is a resetting of expectations.”

The process

Brash creates for clients a competitive market analysis presentation in which she typically includes 12 to 15 comparable houses that helped her price their home. Her research includes visiting the client’s home, gathering materials such as its tax card, assessment and renovation history, inputting all that into an algorithm, then visiting the home again with colleagues and taking their feedback about how much they think the home is worth.

“After you look at a lot of houses, you get a good idea of what a house is worth when you walk into it,” Brash said.

Still, she rarely suggests a list price without her colleagues’ input.

Picking a list price can be tricky for homes in Greenwich and southwestern Connecticut, she said, as the region’s topography can lead to homes along the same street that are worth dramatically different amounts.

Also, buyers today focus more on a home’s condition than in the past. Most people want newer construction with clean lines, minimalist designs and neutral paint colors, she said. Just changing a few design flourishes and adding some staging can increase a home’s value dramatically.

Craig Oshrin of Coldwell Banker in Stamford agreed and said if a house stands apart from the competition, it stands a better chance of selling, regardless of price.

“When they are listing the property, sellers should remember the adage: ‘If it’s not compelling, it’s not selling.’ If it is compelling, price almost takes a back seat.”

When picking a list price, Brash said, she aims to choose one that’s just a little under what she believes a home is worth so it has an advantage over homes on the market for around the same price.

“You want to look better than your competition,” she said.

Oshrin added: “I would say to sellers to look at what you purchased the home for, then look at the market conditions. From there, you will be able to determine if you want to test drive the market or need to sell it because you need to move on.”